1. Susie Brubaker-Cole and Tristen Shay
Building "College Knowledge" through a First-Year Advising Communication Plan
Susie Brubaker-Cole and Tristen Shay

2. Learning Outcomes How to inventory current communication to students
How to evaluate that communication
How to leverage current communication practices and to create new ones for student success
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3. “What Does This Even Mean?”
How many s DO students receive?
What messages are sent and how many overlap or contradict?
What assumed knowledge do we place on first year students? TS

4. Starting the Inventory
Started with communication around Academic Standing
Sub-Committee requested templates of communication from all major offices
- Academic advising at the “College” level
- ROTC, Housing, Athletics, TRIO style programs, etc. TS

5. Inventory Results
Over 80 pages of templates collected with different terminology used in almost every template
- “Pro-School”
- Suspension from a “program” vs. a “College” vs. the University
- Units communicating about Academic Standing who didn’t have access to academic records (e.g. Housing and Dining)
Up to 7 different points of contact per student, per term. TS

6. Applying the Results
Sub-Committee issued 13 observations, suggestions for best practices that included:
- Suggestions on terminology changes
- “Voice” in s
- Consistency in referring to academic policies
- Streamlining who communicates with students and how
Full process completed in a month with only 4-5 meetings TS

7. Creating a Communication Plan
Are there conspicuous gaps or absences in your messaging?
Are we, as university agents, speaking a language that students understand?
Is our communication timely and pro-active?
Are we giving them tools to succeed, or early signs that we want them out? TS

8. FY Advising Communication Plan
Messaging should serve as a success “protective factor” that helps keep students in good academic standing by giving them the tools to succeed:
- Key deadlines and milestones that a student needs to know to be successful
- Key habits and practices of successful students
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9. Distribution and Implementation-
- Twitter
- Facebook
- Web sites
Implemented by:
- Designated Academic Advisors
- Student Affairs staff is support offices (Academic Success Center, Educational Opportunities Program, etc.)
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10. Facebook and

11. Outcomes Greater integration and coherence of messaging
Creation of a unified institutional voice about what it means to be a successful student
Ubiquity of messaging across complex R-1 university structure
Ultimately: creation of FYE Task Force and emphasis on integration and coherence.
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12. Project Assessment Student Focus Groups Bitly (https://bitly.com)
Academic Advisor Feedback
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13. Example of Bitly Tracking

14. Activity
What do students at your institution not know that they need to know?
What information gaps should a FY Advising Communication Plan cover? TS

15. Learn More About our FY Communication Plan
Join Susie and Kerry Thomas at 4pm today for: “Building a Cross-Campus, Collaborative Academic Success Intervention for First year Students at OSU” To learn more about the “STAR” program supporting academic success at OSU.

16. Questions?
Susie Brubaker-Cole Associate Provost for Academic Success and Engagement Oregon State University Tristen Shay Assistant Head Advisor College of Liberal Arts Oregon State University TS